Expert: Kim Farmer - 6/5/2010

Question
Hi Kim,

I have a questions concerning steady state cardio...

First of all I am 28yrs old, 1.7m height, 66kg weight, 28% BF%!

I would like to lower by BF% and want to incorporate to my weekly training routine some morning fasted steady state cardio
I have read that in order to burn fat you need to be in your 60%-70% MHR zone, so that for me (29yrs old) would be mean a heart rate of around 115-130. That however sounds very low to me ... i mean, it seems i only need to walk fast to get there!

What i am currently doing is 3 intense whole body circuit sessions on Mon-Wed-Fri, some swimming on Tue and some running intervals on Thu. In the weekends I do 45-60mins of morning cardio (almost fasted, am only drinking a protein drink beforehand) but i keep my heart rate at around 165-175.
So, my questions is, do you think that by doing what i do in the weekends i do more bad than good? Am I just loosing muscle? Or is it actually worth ir? I do put a lot of effort and intensity in my workouts, so i can't actually think of a workout being just "walking"!

What are your views on that?

Thanks a lot,
Anna

Answer
Hi Anna, you are doing great!  If you feel like you are not working hard enough in the 60-70% HR zone, then simply increase it to 75%-85%. It sounds like you are young and healthy and can handle that level of work.  Using your math, that would put your HR between 143-162 which isn't too far off from 165.  In order to calculate your training heart rate more accurately, I would need to know your resting HR, but I would say that your intensity is pretty high at 165-175.

You asked about burning fat, but you should be focusing more on burning calories which is accomplished at a higher rate when you are working harder for longer periods of time. So you would burn more calories (and therefore make it easier to lose weight AND body fat) if you are working at a higher intensity for 30 minutes than if  you are working at a lower intensity for 30 minutes.  I'm not quite sure why you are drinking a protein drink before your cardio....not really necessary.  If anything, I would recommend a carbohydrate snack or small meal.  Fruits are considered carbohydrates, so you could eat a banana, a bagel, or a bowl of cereal just to name a few examples.

You are doing just what you need to be doing on the weekend which is focusing on cardio, but I would recommend adding strength training at some point (during the week and/or weekend).  Try to do strength training a couple of days/week if you can.  While cardio won't make you lose muscle, strength training will help you keep them toned, strong and defined.

Keep up the good work!

Kim Farmer
ACE Certified Personal Trainer
ACE Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist
www.milehighfitness.com
www.milehighfitness.com/fitnessmatters